Next Full Moon

04 July 2009

better than _________________

Get it while you can, I suppose. I pulled the flashy fixie out of the shed in order to ride it to work. The front tire was flat, and I remembered it having been flat several weeks ago when last I rode it, so I pulled the tube and tried to find the leak. No dice. The valve was a little bent, but it seemed like no big deal, and it held air when closed...Maybe I misremembered, I thought, and put the tube back in. Rode to work, loving it all the while.

Worked. At lunch, I noticed the damn tire was flat.So I spent much of the break replacing it, since I knew I would not be able to find the leak. My pump on that bike is the junk pump- an oooold Silca Impero which I leave on that bike because it is not good enough to use always, and not bad enough to throw out. It felt very strange upon use; it would cycle without catching, and then get very sticky. Back and forth with no rhyme. I pulled it off and put it to my lips to moisten the rubber seal again- it is my standard practice to do this to lube the connection and, in my mind, create a better seal- only to have thispop out and ruin my day. Then the valve stem tore.